Google Hangouts iOS App: Animated GIFs & Calls

Any avid reader of this site knows I am a bit obsessed with animated GIFs, so when Kate Cushing, a product manager at Google for Google+ announced on, ummmm, Google+ that the iOS Hangouts app now supports animated GIFs, I took notice.

I rarely use Google+ on my iPhone, I do use it on Google Glass. But who knows, maybe I'll use it more. The new features include many of the Android features and a bit more, including:

See which of your friends is using Hangouts, and who can be reached right now

Call phone numbers from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch (free to the US and Canada)

Make and receive calls using your Google Voice number

Send and receive animated GIFs that play inline

Hangouts will temporarily turn down your music (instead of stopping it) when you receive an incoming message